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Old 08-31-2002, 06:25 PM   #1
jeanarlene
 
1971 23' Safari
Lake Ann , Michigan
Join Date: Jun 2002
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Unhappy Airabelle has sprung her door

Sprung door.
What next?! We're busy caulking exterior seams with Vulkem and I just learned about Sikaflex 227 for the roof seams so I'll get some of that. Also check out the roof vent cover gaskets...sigh. We just might conquer the leaks but--looking ahead to next problem. We just noticed the door is slightly sprung. It never wanted to close without a whimper and now we know why. My repair man (I'm inept) says to find out how he should go about getting it back in shape. Help!

Jeanne
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Old 08-31-2002, 07:53 PM   #2
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1986 25' Sovereign
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I talked with Inland RV Andy last year after reading in my service manual that you can put a piece of 2X4 wood between the door and frame then start applying pressure to form the door back into place. The service manual also said that you may need to drill out some of the rivets holding the inside door skin in place. My door had a slight opening at the top right hand side corned going down toward the lock. I placed a short piece of a 2X4 between the bottom of the door (about 20" long) and pushed inward on the upper right hand corner while my son held the lower portion of the door against the wood and door frame. I finally was able to get it to move in and make a seal without drilling out rivets. Good luck.
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Old 08-31-2002, 07:56 PM   #3
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Adjust doors with a 2x4 between the door and frame, but are you sure it is really spurng? The extrusion that makes the door frame is pretty solid, it would take quite a force to spring it. Mine was slightly open at the top, but I think it was probably underformed. Have you tried to adjust the strike and checked the hinges for wear?

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Old 08-31-2002, 08:03 PM   #4
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After my last post I hit myself in the forehead. I forgot to ask you if your door was sagging slightly as if a hinge had worked loose or if the pin had become worn. The hinges can be adjusted from the inside. If up and down is OK then my previous post regarding shaping the door still stands.
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Old 09-01-2002, 09:34 AM   #5
jeanarlene
 
1971 23' Safari
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Wink Door Gap

Ken and I will inspect the hinge first to see if that's the culprit. If not,we'll try the 2x4 trick. Between the two methods a solution must lie. Rain has enough places to enter without commandeering the door!

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Old 09-02-2002, 12:00 PM   #6
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Jeanne.
The original door frame on a 1971 was cast metal. If you attempt to reshape it, you will probably break the frame.
Normally, the fix is to remove the interior door metal, and then cut the door frame, and reweld it into it's proper shape.
Many door frames were broken by attempting to "rebend," the cast metal. Cast metal doesn't stretch, but instead usually fractures.
Not an easy fix, but a permanent one.


Andy
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Old 09-02-2002, 06:44 PM   #7
jeanarlene
 
1971 23' Safari
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Door still gapping

Well, Andy, sounds as if amateurs can't fix the door. Perhaps the guys who used 2x4s were not workinging on cast metal doors. I'm not interested in hauling Airabelle a far piece to a reputable A/S dealer with the moxy to cut and reweld the door frame. I wonder if welding shops would be an alternative? Perhaps I will luck out as with the stove and find a local welder capable of doing the job. I'll call around.

Jeanne
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Old 09-03-2002, 12:43 PM   #8
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jeanarlene,
The metal in my '77 door is not cast aluminum so therefore it is an acceptable practice to bend the door back in place. Andy knows his stuff and if he says that the door frame in your '71 is a cast unit then believe him. It makes sense what Andy says about cutting and then rewelding back into place. I would find a welding shop that has experience with aluminum and explain what you are trying to do. You would probably have to leave your trailer with them to "fit" the door. One more option would be to check salvage yards found in the vendor section of this forum and try to locate a door to your trailer. Try to get it fixed as soon as you can so that you do not start experiencing wood rot on the floor by your door.
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Amsoil Dual by-pass oil filtration system
Amsoil synthetics all around
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Old 09-03-2002, 08:04 PM   #9
jeanarlene
 
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Airabelle's Door

Hi Craig,
Thanks for the tip about seeking a welding shop that has experience with aluminum. I'll try that.

Jeanne
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Old 10-10-2002, 08:52 PM   #10
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Arrow More Sprung Door

>>>~~~~Overlander64 (Kevin Allen) wrote in another thread:>>>
Quote:
"After heavy rainstorms, there would be a small puddle in the floor next to my refrigerator - - I had assumed that this was coming in around the door gasket as my entrance door had been sprung when it was blown open in transit. After having the door repaired, the leak reappeared with the next rain storm."
Kevin would you give us some info on the sprung door, its repair, and who did it and the cost?

May I also suggest that Jeanarlene change the subject-line of this thread to just 'Sprung Door / Bent Door'. As that it might become an ongoing thread on this subject, which is a common and serious one. I think. The name change might help future searchers.

Some call the problem "bent door".
Here are two different links elsewhere on this forum.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.airforums.com/forum...&threadid=1564

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.airforums.com/forum...&threadid=1567

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Old 10-11-2002, 08:38 AM   #11
jeanarlene
 
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Cool Sprung door/Bent door

I've been working on other problems with Airabelle and forgot to let everyone know how I coped with the door leaks. I took Airabelle to a local welder who works on aluminum. He didn't want to take on the risk of cutting the inner frame (as Andy suggested) and rewelding. Since he was the only welding business in my area that does aluminum welding I knew I'd have to drive a distance to one that does. This made me more amenable to his suggestion that he thought putting on more weatherstripping in the upper right hand corner might do the trick. The door now closes securely, still locks, and hasn't leaked during the last heavy rain. However, I know the weatherstripping he used isn't the right kind so I'll have to replace it someday. Sometimes you just have to put on blinders and hope for the best.
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Old 10-11-2002, 03:00 PM   #12
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Airabelle has Sprung Her Door

I was something of a victim of unusual circumstances when the door blew open in transit on my Overlander. I had just picked it up at P & S Trailer Service in Helena, OH. They had just completed a complete polish and plasticoat job on the coach. My door's deadbolt and knobset latches had both been giving me trouble, and the cylinder in the deadbolt had frozen in the closed (unlocked) position. The knobset latch wasn't able to hold the door closed by itself, and the door blew open less that 8 miles from the Ruth's shop. I immediately called them on my cell phone and they asked me to return to the shop and they would see what they could do. Less than an hour later, I was on my way with a patch over the hole that the knobset had pushed in the side of the coach, and the door had been repaired - - all at no additional cost. The cost of the polish and plasticoat wasn't cheap, but I in no way anticipated absolutely no additional charge for the repair.

Good luck in finding a soluction to your door's problem
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Old 02-06-2011, 12:09 PM   #13
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Andy, does that go for a 73 Tradewind?
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